Tui Blue Gardens - Adults Only - Savoy Signature

“Exceptional staff and food, but outdated rooms and overpriced extras”

We stayed at TUI BLUE Madeira Gardens for 14 nights, and while there were some wonderful highlights, the hotel overall falls short of the 4-star expectations usually associated with the Savoy Signature brand. Our stay was split into two parts due to a chaotic flight cancellation, which unfortunatel… more

We stayed at TUI BLUE Madeira Gardens for 14 nights, and while there were some wonderful highlights, the hotel overall falls short of the 4-star expectations usually associated with the Savoy Signature brand. Our stay was split into two parts due to a chaotic flight cancellation, which unfortunately allowed us to see a much less pleasant side of the property. The absolute best part of this hotel is the people. The staff at the reception and in the restaurant are exceptionally kind, professional, and genuinely welcoming. We had half-board, and the food was excellent; plentiful, fresh, and high quality every single day. Also, the housekeeping does a fantastic job as the entire hotel is kept spotless. The location is convenient, about a 20-minute walk to central Funchal, and the on-site parking for €15 per day is a great deal considering how difficult parking is on the island. However, there are significant downsides that guests should be aware of. The furniture in the rooms is heavily outdated and the bathrooms, though clean, are stuck in the past. We were disappointed by the lack of basic amenities; for a 4-star hotel, providing only a tiny soap and a basic wall dispenser is not enough, and we had to buy our own toiletries nearby. A major comfort issue was the shower water, which was highly inconsistent throughout our entire stay, constantly shifting between freezing cold and scalding hot. The pricing for drinks also felt like a bit of a "tourist trap." Charging €6.60 for two espressos-which you cannot even get at breakfast unless you wait for the bar to open-and €7 for a single glass of house wine is far above the local average and simply doesn't match the actual luxury level of the hotel. Finally, a warning regarding the rooms: our first 11 nights were in a spacious sea-view room, but after our flight was cancelled, the only room available for our extension was a "hill view" room. In reality, there is no hill view; the window looked directly into a massive, noisy construction pit with heavy machinery operating from 8:00 AM until late afternoon. The hotel provided no prior warning about this project, and to make matters worse, the bathtub faucet in that room was literally falling apart. In summary, the staff and food deserve 5 stars, but the facilities desperately need a renovation. It is a friendly and clean place, but be prepared for outdated interiors, inconsistent water temperatures, and high bar prices.

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“Much needed winter sunshine !”

We stayed here for a week in February- we booked with Tui and before we came , the hotel contacted Tui to let us know there was building work behind the hotel( this was nothing to do with the hotel) I do feel sorry for the hotel as it’s out of their hands. So book a sea view! This was very hone… more

We stayed here for a week in February- we booked with Tui and before we came , the hotel contacted Tui to let us know there was building work behind the hotel( this was nothing to do with the hotel) I do feel sorry for the hotel as it’s out of their hands. So book a sea view! This was very honest of them . We were offered to change but did not as we had a sea view . The building work is to the rear of the hotel. It only impacted us when we went up to the seventh floor. We didn’t notice it when we were in the jacuzzi- only on the sun beds. We were so pleased we still went as we had a lovely week. We were on half board and found the food very good. Breakfast was full of choice and very good coffee! I particularly enjoyed the waffles and French toast. Dinner was delicious with a good variety of fresh food, salads, vegetables. I generally had fish which was very god. The cheese selection was wonderful ( I love cheese!) The vino verde wine was lovely and not too overpriced. We found all the staff to be friendly and efficient from reception to waiting staff. We wouldn’t recommend going to the speciality restaurant- the choice was very limited with most options incurring a surcharge! The hotel is in a good location and only 15-20 minutes into the town( depending on how fast you walk!) We would definitely return!

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“Maderia 5 star, TUI blue maderia garden's 3 star”

Our 2nd visit and it will be our last. The hotel feels tired and dated, definitely NOT 4 STAR. The building work directly behind the hotel is very intrusive, the roof top area and outside game area become unusable from 8 am until the builder's stop working in the evening. Our first room was a "mo… more

Our 2nd visit and it will be our last. The hotel feels tired and dated, definitely NOT 4 STAR. The building work directly behind the hotel is very intrusive, the roof top area and outside game area become unusable from 8 am until the builder's stop working in the evening. Our first room was a "mountain view" room. I think that's spin for "building site view" We were unable to hear each speak in our room with the door closed, the earthmoving machine and large pneumatic drill directly behind the hotel made this impossible. We moved rooms three times to finally have an acceptable room. Food, a lot of repetition, particularly at breakfast. Luke warm and bland. No water with your evening meal (unless you paid for it), 1 litre of water, 2 x teabags, 2 x coffee sachets and 2 x milk sachets provided daily per room. So the choice of one hot drink each in the evening or morning but not both and 500ml of water for 24 hours. NOT 4 STAR I enjoyed trying the daily cocktail in the bar directly by the dining room and my husband a glass of wine before our evening meal. We tried to enter the dining room with our drinks and were stopped. Presumably they wanted us to order drinks from the restaurant menus ( which came from the same outside bar with an inflated price) We hoped to use the hot tub located on the roof top after the building work had finished in the evening and it was faulty for the 10 days we stayed. Again NOT 4 STAR Maderia itself is lush, picturesque and the locals are friendly. Funchal is about a 20 minute walk away down hill. Lots of bars, restaurants and shops but nothing immediately around the hotel. Everything is at least 15 minutes away. We found a large shopping mall around a 40 minute walk away to while a way and afternoon. Thank you for getting this far!

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